


Oh how he loved he was

by Starley (darcystrange)



Category: Versailles no Bara | Rose of Versailles
Genre: Based on an episode/chapter, Gen, The telling of a life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-31
Updated: 2016-07-31
Packaged: 2018-07-28 12:55:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,800
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7641058
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darcystrange/pseuds/Starley
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"In his mother’s embrace, surrounded by midwives and maids, this baby boy was sound asleep, unaware of the joy he brought to all of France, unaware he was called the “son of France”. This baby boy was destined to be King. This baby boy was blessed by God. This baby boy was Louis-Joseph Xavier."</p><p>A short story about the short life of Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI's first son, Louis Joseph.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Oh how he loved he was

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this a while back for creative writing class and I decided to post this up here. I'm sorry if there's any spelling or grammar mistakes. I'm sorry if the characters seem out of character, I have a habit of making them out of character.
> 
> I hope you enjoy. All characters in this story belong to Riyoko Ikeda (and History).

_“The first prince, Louis Joseph Xavier, was too beautiful, too clever, and so God loved him deeply.”- Rose of Versailles chapter 39 (Riyoko Ikeda)_

**The good news,**

It was a chilly day, just a little before noon, when Queen Marie Antoinette gave birth for the second time. This time, she gave birth to a baby boy. A beautiful boy with a round face, fair skin, and big eyes; a spitting image of his mother. Oh how tiny he was in her arms, fragile as a flower as his cries were no louder than a whisper, soft and weak. It could not rival the church bells that rang throughout Paris, announcing the good news that the long awaited son was born. People took the streets to celebrate; pouring beers and wishing each other well. For at last, God had blessed France with an heir to the throne. Since the Queen’s first child, a girl named Marie Therese, could not be heir to the throne because of the Salic Law. In his mother’s embrace, surrounded by midwives and maids, this baby boy was sound asleep, unaware of the joy he brought to all of France, unaware he was called the “son of France”. This baby boy was destined to be King. This baby boy was blessed by God. This baby boy was Louis-Joseph Xavier.

**In fairy tale like garden,**

The afternoon was his favorite time of day since the sun would shine its brightest and his mother would be free from her duties as Queen of France. In the afternoons, he would play with his mother and sister in the garden of Versailles, where flowers bloomed and birds sang. “This garden is my favorite place to be in; it looks like it came straight from a fairy tale.” He would often hear his mother muse in her lithe French as she watched the birds bathing in the birdbath. There, he would race his sister to the Apollon fountain, laughing along the way, their mother following close behind. His beautiful blond curls bounced and swayed in the wind. He looked like a fairy, a fitting image for the future King of France, since all Kings of France held such beauty. Then as soon as the afternoon would begin, it quickly would end as mother Queen had to return to her duties. There would be a banquet at Versailles later on in the evening and it was the Queen’s job to attend to the guests. Louis-Joseph would become upset because the merriment was over now and he would be away from his mother. Then mother Queen would kiss him on his cheeks and promise him that she would try to finish early.

**First sign of illness,**

He broke out in a cold sweat while playing in the garden, crouching down on his knees to catch his breath. His mother ran over to him and scooped up her precious son in her arms. His face was flushed, his hair was plastered to his forehead with sweat, and he was breathing heavy. Worried, his mother ran through the halls, looking for a maid. “My dear Joseph is sick. He must see a doctor! Bring me a doctor!” She said. Later on that evening, a doctor was summoned and he suggested that the crowned prince go to a place with clean air in order to get rid of the fever. Thus, the prince was sent to Château de la Muette since the air around it had healing powers. Oh how sad that poor prince was for he would be away from his precious Versailles, his fairy tale garden, his home. During the ride, with his head resting on his mother’s lap, he asked “will I ever go back?” and mother Queen nodded her head. “Yes, very soon.” That was a lie, of course, for it took a year for the crowned prince to return to his beloved Versailles.

**A gentle modesty,**

In his studies, his teachers would often praise how smart he was at such a young age, knowing his French and Latin, understanding the fundamental steps of ruling a kingdom. “ You are such a smart boy. You will make a great King, one day.” They would say and Louis-Joseph would bow his little blond head and mutter out a thank you. Oh how modest was he. The praises got around and it reached his father’s ears.  Impressed, his father, King Louis XVI, personally watched over his training, which shocked his teachers for never once did a King of France observe the crowned prince’s education so closely.

**Love,**

He saw her one day in the hall of Mirrors. She was amongst the many guests that came to congratulate the Queen for giving birth to her second son, his younger brother, Louis-Charles. She was tall and lean, her blonde hair hung loose and framed her face, and her eyes were a shade of blue that could rival the oceans. She looked like Venus, the Roman goddess he often read about in his studies, but she had such a dignified stance that could be compared to that of Mars, the Roman god of War, as she bowed her head before mother Queen and kissed her right hand before saying congratulations. Curious and fascinated as he was, Louis-Joseph went up to her and kneeled. “Who are you? What is your name?” He asked.

She humored him, crouching down to his level. “How curious you are, crowned prince. My name is Oscar François de Jarjayes. I’m the commander of the Royal Guards.”

“Oscar…” He said, testing the syllables out and enjoying the way it rolled on his tongue as he said her name. He looked up at her, she seemed to be glowing, he blushed. “What a lovely name! So tell me, when I become King, will you command my royal guards.”

She chuckled and then wore a smile that put the crowned prince at ease before saying “Yes”.

And Louis-Joseph did not understand it at all; the way his heart quickened and danced as his face was getting warmer. It felt like a fever yet it wasn’t, but he enjoyed it so much.  He would later ask his mother about it and she told him that feeling was love.

**Signs of dying,**

The fevers were constant, wrecking his entire body, never seeming to end. No matter how many visits to Château de la Muette, the fevers did not go away but it increased tenfold. But, that was not the end of it. There was an ache that started it all. It manifested in his back, digging holes in his spine. And at the tender age of six, Louis-Joseph found it hard to walk as the pain increased each step he took. Oh how much he would cry. For he could no longer be of any use; his education was put on hold and he was sent to Château de Meudon . Oh how long he would be in bed, unable to move without feeling such pain. His mother stayed at his bedside and washed his feet. Louis-Joseph felt so bad for troubling his mother so much. Afterall, she was the Queen of France and she had so much to do but she chose to stay with him. “The crowned prince is ill! The crowned prince is terribly ill!” The maids said, running around to get hot water and rags. When a doctor was summoned and he checked up on the sick crowned prince, he hung his head as he said “His spine is curved and he’s suffering from tuberculosis even in place where the air is so clean, he does not have long to live, six months at most.” With a heavy heart, mother Queen ran to the chapel, knelt down and prayed that God let Louis-Joseph live.

**One last wish,**

It was spring when Oscar came to visit him. When he saw her, he froze, the pain lessened for a bit, and then he smiled. “Oscar” He said, struggling to sit up. The maids had to help him. “Please take me outside. Please let me ride on your horse.” Oscar paused, unsure of how to respond. And when she opened her mouth to speak, Louis-Joseph cut her off. “I want to ride a horse with you. Please.”

This time, mother Queen had answer for Oscar. “It’s alright, Oscar. Please grant Joseph his wish.”

**One last time,**

In the open fields of le Château de Meudon, Louis-Joseph told Oscar that he loved her. He wanted to be king but that was an impossible dream because he knew he was going to die soon. For he had a fragile health and he was always so sick, always in bed ill and teary-eyed. So for one last time, he would act like a king for his own sake and for her, his favourite.

“I will return to Versailles” He proclaimed in a determined voice, “for the Estate General meeting and watch it all because this will be a momentous day for France and it will be remembered for a very long time.”

She agreed. “You will make a fine king. Your France is being reborn and soon you will be King Louis XVII.”

Louis-Joseph looked at her with his dying eyes, she looked like the sun itself. His eyes watered and he sat up and hugged her. “One day, I shall return and I won’t be so sick, I’ll grow up and become a fine man. So wait for me til then.”

And for one last time, he returned to Versailles for the opening of the Estate General meeting. It would be his last.

**Oh how loved he was,**

The end was drawing near like racing towards a finish line. Louis-Joseph’s health was rapidly declining to the point he found it hard to breathe. In his bed, he apologized to his mother Queen and father, to his sister and his brother, and all those who took care of him in his time of need for being so sick. After that, he hummed as the wonderful times of his young life flashed before his eyes and then oh so slowly, the crowned prince fell asleep. His mother held on to his tiny wrist, checking  for a pulse; there was one and then there was none. Louis-Joseph, the first son of the King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette, had gone back home. For God had loved him so much, he brought him back to rest. And Louis-Joseph could not hear his siblings’ wails or the sounds of falling chairs as his father collapsed in grief or his mother screaming “And now Joseph, you’re leaving me all alone, so alone.” For he was no longer in pain as he was embraced by the Lord. Oh how loved he was. He was only seven years old.

 


End file.
